The Guardian view on Britain and China: fasten your seatbelts | Editorial

The UK and other countries are reshaping their approach to Beijing. It's going to be bumpy

Five years ago George Osborne, then chancellor, promised a golden decade for Sino-British relations. The sheen was always deceptive, and the decade has ended prematurely. In April, Dominic Raab remarked that there could be no return to business as usual. Now the foreign secretary's rhetoric is translating into reality, with indications that the government is preparing to turn its back on Huawei as a 5G supplier.

The fundamental reassessment of relations with China by western countries is becoming more explicit. That Beijing will retaliate to such shifts is equally evident. On Thursday it warned Australia of unspecified consequences for offering Hongkongers a pathway to permanent residence; Canberra's latest travel advice for China cautions its citizens that they could be arbitrarily detained. But Britain is also taking the heat over Huawei's future and the offer of potential citizenship to Hong Kong residents. This week, Beijing's ambassador to London, Liu Xiaoming, warned: China wants to be UK's friend and partner. But if you treat China as a hostile country, you would have to bear the consequences."